A MOTION passed in March by a majority of Herefordshire Councillors gave the Conservative administration a year to talk to Gloucestershire County Council, the government and local businesses and to find a source of external funding for a railway feasibility study to be carried out.

However, with no movement being made by the Herefordshire authority, the LibDems have stepped in and produced their own draft proposals for funding and commissioning a study into the feasibility of trains returning to Ross-on-Wye on a restored Hereford to Gloucester link.

In an open letter sent to Cllr Philip Price, the cabinet member responsible for the work, Ross Councillor Louis Stark asked for an update on progress and offered a draft set of terms of reference.

"I don't believe the administration has lifted a finger on this project in the past two months" Cllr Stark said.

"An interested party with experience in a similar project contacted me with a suggested draft terms of reference.

“I thought it might give Cllr Price the nudge he needs. We won't get any sense of whether the government or private investors will be interested in supporting a feasibility study unless we can show them what the study will cover.

“That's what the terms of reference cover. This motion was passed by a clear majority. It is council policy and it is the administration's job to deliver council policy."

Calls for a new rail link between Gloucester and Hereford were made in March as new housing has increased in Hereford, Ross and Gloucester, with many thousands anticipated in the coming years.

The Hereford, Ross and Gloucester Railway was closed to passengers in November 1964 before being dismantled during The Beeching cuts.

Herefordshire Councillor Philip Price, cabinet member for transport and infrastructure said: "The County Council is aware of the Notice of Motion agreed at Full Council in relation to the potential reinstatement of the Hereford–Ross–Gloucester rail link.

“Work is now underway to respond to this motion in line with normal Council processes. As is standard following motions of this type, officers are first required to scope and define the work needed before any study can be commissioned, to ensure it is properly designed, proportionate and aligned with the Council’s wider Local Transport Plan and emerging rail strategy.

“This includes identifying the technical requirements, costs, and appropriate delivery approach. Further updates will be provided once this initial scoping work has been completed."